The Cincinnati Reds were trailing 3-0 before they registered their first hit and it was 5-0 before they scored their first run as the Pittsburgh Pirates kept game one of their scheduled doubleheader out of reach in their 6-1 victory on Tuesday afternoon.
| Final | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pittsburgh Pirates (53-88) | 6 | 12 | 0 |
| Cincinnati Reds (56-84) | 1 | 5 | 0 |
| W: Oviedo (3-2) L: Cessa (3-3) |
|||
| Statcast | Box Score | Game Thread | |||
The Offense
Cincinnati didn’t get much of anything going on offense until they had back-to-back 2-out walks in the 3rd inning, but a ground out ended that threat without any damage. With one out in the 5th inning Spencer Steer’s single broke up the Pirates no-hit bid, but the shutout remained alive until the following inning.
TJ Friedl led the 6th off with a ground-rule double. Jonathan India followed with a single, but Friedl didn’t get a good read on it and only advanced to third base. India got an even worse read somewhere on the play and was thrown out trying to get to second base by at least 10 feet. Aristides Aquino came through with an RBI single to get the Reds on the board and make it a 5-1 game, but that was the last time the Reds would score in game one.
The Pitching
Luis Cessa didn’t give up a hit until the top of the 3rd inning, but after a walk and another hit that leadoff single came around to score and put the Pirates up 1-0. Ke’Bryan Hayes and Bryan Reynolds would each hit a solo home run in the next two innings as the Pirates extended their lead to 3-0 after the 5th. In the 6th inning Cessa retired the first two batters, but then gave up a double and a 2-run homer to Cal Mitchell and it was 5-0 and he was on his way to the dugout and Kyle Dowdy was coming out of the bullpen to try and finish out the inning. After hitting the first batter, he got Oneil Cruz to ground out. Dowdy would return to pitch a scoreless 7th and 8th innings in his Reds debut. Hunter Strickland took over in the 9th inning and gave up back-to-back 2-out doubles to make it a 6-1 game.
Notes Worth Noting
Kyle Dowdy’s 2.1 shutout inning appearance was his first big league game since May 26th of 2019 when he was with the Texas Rangers.
Game two of the doubleheader is set to get underway at 6:40pm.
Up Next for the Cincinnati Reds
Pittsburgh Pirates vs Cincinnati Reds
Tuesday September 13th, 6:40pm ET
Luis Ortiz vs TBA
My only interest in this team at this point is if they can line up Pujols for 3 bombs since I bet 700! I’m confident Chase Anderson, Minor, and Cessa on Sunday can close the deal!
Errata for Doug.
The run was scored on Farmer’s ground out to third, not Aquino’s single.
And whether they become the first team to hit 100 batters. And the Reds are at 64 players this year, a team record. I don’t know the MLB record9
Assuming that Espinal, the call up from Louisville, pitches in the second game he will be the 38th pitcher made available to David Bell this year. This guy had a pretty promising start in AAA but seems to have fallen off the wagon. He has a 5+ ERA and 1.50 WHIP amid other issues. Kind of fits the pattern of Red’s pickups the last few years. Maybe he’ll get the “new guy” boost in his first game but if that is the best the Bats can send up then…
Louisville is keeping pace with the Reds as each has an identical .400 winning percentage.
What’s the difference between a Busch Stadium hotdog and a Great American Ballpark hotdog?
You can buy a Busch Stadium hotdog in October! ?
Oh ye of little faith. Hot dogs available at GABP October 3-5 this year.
¯\_(?)_/¯
A lot has been mentioned about Aquino’s hot streak now that his average is over .200. He has an amazing amount of strength and quickness in his arms but I still can’t see him as anything except a fringe talent (which is not worth keeping here). I’ll throw Senzel under the bus too. I don’t know why he was so highly touted but I don’t think he is adequate in center field and his hitting approach just doesn’t get it done. He has been consistent, his average mired around .240 most of the season but his RBI production is pathetic (24 in 346 AB). Even Colin Moran has 23 RBI in less than 1/3 of the AB. His OPS is rock bottom as well. For players with over 100 AB, only Barrero and Aramis Garcia have stats that approach his sorry record. I would like to see both of them traded for whatever the Reds could get even though I would not be surprised if both of them do better for another team.
Fringe talent? Cmon, I am so glad you are not the GM.
Looks like Fernando Cruz will start for the Reds with just shy of 5 innings under his belt. He threw 23 pitches on Saturday and 8 on Sunday. Anyone hazard a guess of how many pitches he gets today? Looks like our 32 year old AAA pickup will get 5 innings if possible. The Bucs are countering with their AAA pickup for his first MLB appearance at age 23. Hmm!
“Having been some days in preparation
A splendid time is guaranteed for all…”
That’s very surprising to see Fernando Cruz get the start. He led all the minor leagues in SAVES and now he’s a starter. Give us 5 or 6 good innings Fernando!
I’d bet the under on 3.0 innings in the hardest way possible. He hasn’t thrown more than 30 pitches in a game in nearly 3 months.